All news in category "Vendor and Hyperscaler Watch"

Cloudflare Open-Sources tokio-quiche: Async QUIC for Tokio

🚀 Cloudflare has open-sourced tokio-quiche, an async QUIC library that combines its quiche transport implementation with the Tokio async runtime. The project provides a battle-tested integration for async UDP I/O and HTTP/3, delivering low-latency, high-throughput handling of millions of requests per second without requiring developers to wire a sans-io stack. tokio-quiche includes an HTTP/3-focused driver, examples, and abstractions such as ApplicationOverQuic so teams can build clients and servers more quickly. It already powers Cloudflare Proxy B in Apple iCloud Private Relay, Oxy-based proxies, and Warp’s MASQUE client, and aims to accelerate broader adoption of HTTP/3 and QUIC.

Google Cloud previews Axion-based N4A general VMs Series

🚀 Google Cloud has introduced the Axion-based N4A VM series in preview, positioned as the most cost-effective N-series to date with up to 2× better price-performance and 80% better performance-per-watt versus comparable x86 VMs. Available on Compute Engine, GKE, Dataproc and Batch, N4A supports up to 64 vCPUs, 512 GB DDR5, 50 Gbps networking, Custom Machine Types and new Hyperdisk storage profiles (Balanced, Throughput, ML). Early customers report substantial cost and performance gains.

Google Cloud Announces Ironwood TPUs and Axion VMs

🚀 Google Cloud announced general availability of Ironwood, its seventh-generation TPU, alongside a new family of Arm-based Axion VMs. Ironwood is optimized for large-scale training, reinforcement learning, and high-volume, low-latency inference, with claims of 10x peak performance over TPU v5p and multi-fold efficiency gains versus TPU v6e (Trillium). The architecture supports superpods up to 9,216 chips, 9.6 Tb/s inter‑chip interconnect, up to 1.77 PB shared HBM, and Optical Circuit Switching for dynamic fabric routing. Complementary software and orchestration updates — including Cluster Director, MaxText improvements, vLLM support, and GKE Inference Gateway — aim to reduce time-to-first-token and serving costs, while Axion N4A/C4A instances provide ARM-based CPU options for cost-sensitive inference and data-prep workloads.

Inside Ironwood: Google's Co‑Designed TPU AI Stack

🚀 The Ironwood TPU stack is a co‑designed hardware and software platform that scales from massive pre‑training to low‑latency inference. It combines dense MXU compute, ample HBM3E memory, and a high‑bandwidth ICI/OCS interconnect with compiler-driven optimizations in XLA and native support for JAX and PyTorch. Pallas and Mosaic enable hand‑tuned kernels for peak performance, while observability and orchestration tools address resilience and efficiency across pods and superpods.

Google Cloud Announces Axion C4A Metal Bare-Metal Arm

🔧 Google Cloud is introducing C4A metal, a bare-metal instance class powered by its Arm-based Axion processors, entering preview soon. Designed for workloads that require direct hardware access and Arm-native compatibility, C4A metal delivers 96 vCPUs, 768 GB DDR5 memory, up to 100 Gbps networking, and support for Google Cloud Hyperdisk variants. C4A metal targets Android development, automotive simulation, CI/CD, security workloads, and custom hypervisors by eliminating nested virtualization overhead and preserving Arm instruction-set parity.

From Tabletop to Turnkey: Cyber Resilience in Finance

🛡️ Financial institutions face a regulatory shift: cyber‑resilience has moved from best practice to prescriptive requirement under regimes such as DORA, CORIE, MAS TRM, FCA/PRA and others. Filigran’s OpenAEV combines tabletop crisis playbooks with breach-and-attack simulation so teams can rehearse human and technical responses together. The platform synchronizes players via enterprise IAM, translates threat intelligence into timed technical injects and simulated communications, and streamlines logistics, reporting and continual improvement. OpenAEV is free for community use, with a library of scenarios and SIEM/EDR integrations, and Filigran is hosting expert sessions to demonstrate operationalization.

Bitdefender Named Representative Vendor in 2025 Gartner Guide

🔒 Bitdefender has been named a Representative Vendor in the 2025 Gartner Market Guide for Managed Detection and Response for the fourth consecutive year. The recognition reflects Bitdefender’s human-driven MDR approach, combining 24x7 analyst-led response, AI-driven analytics, and proactive exposure management. Gartner inclusion is based on client visibility and service orientation rather than ranking, highlighting providers that meet its inclusion criteria.

Build Your First AI Travel Assistant with Gemini Today

🚀 This codelab walks developers through building a functional travel chatbot using Google's Gemini via the Vertex AI SDK. It explains how to connect a web frontend to Gemini, craft system instructions to shape assistant behavior, and enable function-calling to fetch live data such as geocoding and weather. No advanced ML expertise is required; the lab provides step-by-step code samples, API usage, and practical recommendations for iterating prompts so you can produce a working, production-ready demo.

Amazon S3 Adds Tagging for S3 Tables (ABAC & Cost)

🔖Amazon S3 now supports tags on S3 Tables to enable attribute-based access control (ABAC) and cost allocation. Tags can be applied to table buckets and individual tables, letting you manage permissions for users and roles without frequent IAM or resource-policy updates. Tagging is available in all Regions where S3 Tables is offered and can be used via the Console, SDK, API, or CLI. Use tags to simplify governance and track costs.

AWS End User Messaging adds SMS Carrier Lookup feature

📲 AWS End User Messaging now offers Carrier Lookup, enabling customers to retrieve carrier-related details for a phone number — including country, number type, dialing code, and mobile network and carrier codes. By validating these attributes before sending, teams can improve SMS deliverability, reduce failed or misrouted messages, and avoid sending to incorrect destinations. The capability supports common use cases such as OTPs, account updates, reminders, and promotions, and is available in all AWS Regions where the service is offered.

Amazon CloudFront Adds Cross-Account VPC Origins Support

🔒 Amazon announced that CloudFront now supports cross-account VPC origins, enabling distributions to reach ALB, NLB, and EC2 origins inside private subnets across different AWS accounts. Customers can grant access via AWS RAM, including across Organizations and OUs, removing the need to place origins in public subnets. The capability is available in AWS Commercial Regions at no extra charge and is designed to simplify security and multi-account operations.

Leading Bug Bounty Programs and Market Shifts 2025

🔒 Bug bounty programs remain a core component of security testing in 2025, drawing external researchers to identify flaws across web, mobile, AI, and critical infrastructure. Leading platforms like Bugcrowd, HackerOne, Synack and vendors such as Apple, Google, Microsoft and OpenAI have broadened scopes and increased payouts. Firms now reward full exploit chains and emphasize human-led reconnaissance over purely automated scanning. Programs also support regulatory compliance in critical sectors.

AWS Releases Whitepaper on European Sovereign Cloud

🔒 Amazon Web Services (AWS) published a whitepaper, Overview of the AWS European Sovereign Cloud, available in English, German, and French, outlining the planned design and objectives. The document describes a new, independent cloud for Europe supported by a €7.8 billion investment and a target launch of the first Region in the State of Brandenburg, Germany by the end of 2025. It highlights dedicated physical infrastructure, logical isolation, EU-based corporate governance, and continued access to the full AWS service portfolio while addressing data sovereignty and law enforcement processes.

CloudWatch Database Insights expands anomaly detection

🔍 Amazon CloudWatch Database Insights now detects anomalies across additional metrics in its on‑demand analysis experience. The ML-driven on‑demand reports identify anomalies in database-level and OS-level counters and surface per‑SQL anomalies for top statements, automatically comparing selected periods to learned baselines. The feature pairs intuitive visualizations with specific remediation advice to help reduce mean time to diagnosis. Enable Advanced mode for Amazon Aurora or Amazon RDS via the AWS Management Console, APIs, or CloudFormation and consult RDS and Aurora documentation for availability by region, engine, and instance class.

Amazon FSx Integrates with AWS Secrets Manager for AD

🔒 Amazon FSx now integrates with AWS Secrets Manager to store and manage Active Directory domain service account credentials for FSx for Windows File Server and FSx for NetApp ONTAP Storage Virtual Machines (SVMs). This removes the need to supply plain-text service account usernames and passwords in the console, APIs, CLI, or CloudFormation, and enables credential rotation and improved credential hygiene. The capability is available in all AWS Regions where FSx is offered.

Migrating from OPA to Amazon Verified Permissions Guide

🔁 This AWS Security Blog post by Samuel Folkes outlines a practical approach to migrating authorization from Open Policy Agent (OPA) and Rego to Amazon Verified Permissions using the Cedar policy language. It highlights key benefits: a fully managed service, reduced operational overhead, and significant performance gains. The article walks through schema design, common translation patterns (RBAC, ABAC, ReBAC), application integration changes, testing practices, and a phased deployment strategy to compare and validate behavior during migration.

Microsoft to Remove Office Sandbox MDAG from Enterprise

🔒 Microsoft confirmed that Microsoft Defender Application Guard (MDAG) for Office will be removed from enterprise Office builds, with phased removal beginning in 2026 and final cut-offs through 2027. MDAG used Hyper‑V sandboxing to isolate malicious Office documents but incurred slower load times and carried sandbox escape risks. Microsoft advises enabling Attack Surface Reduction (ASR) rules and Windows Defender Application Control (WDAC), and reviewing any automation, workflows, or SIEM integrations that depended on MDAG’s isolation logs.

Azure AI Foundry and UiPath: Agentic Automation in Care

🏥 Microsoft and UiPath describe how integrated agents from Azure AI Foundry and UiPath, orchestrated by UiPath Maestro, can operationalize AI within clinical workflows to surface and act on incidental radiology findings. The workflow uses UiPath medical record summarization agents to flag findings, Azure AI Foundry imaging agents to analyze PACS images and prior results, and UiPath agents to aggregate and forward consolidated follow-up reports to ordering clinicians. Microsoft says this agentic approach accelerates decision-making, reduces physician workload, and improves outcomes while maintaining compliance with DICOMweb and FHIR standards.

Check Point Scores 99.59% in NSS Labs Firewall Test

🔒 Check Point Software achieved the highest security effectiveness rating in the recent NSS Labs Enterprise Firewall Test, posting a 99.59% score. The result spotlights its prevention-first architecture and comprehensive threat coverage, which the company says outperformed competing vendors. The blog links this independent validation to rising AI-driven risks, citing Check Point Research findings that 1 in 54 GenAI prompts carries a high risk of sensitive-data exposure and that 91% of frequent AI users are affected, underscoring the need for robust network defense.

Windows 11 Store adds Ninite-style multi-app installer

🧰 The Microsoft Store web now enables Windows 11 users to create a Ninite-style multi-app installer that downloads and installs multiple apps from a single executable. Users can select apps on the Store website and click Install selected, which generates a background installer to run the installs. The capability currently works only in the Store web, is limited to a curated set of 64 apps, and restricts packages to 16 apps per download to avoid overwhelming Store servers.